Product Description

The 1960s witnessed the creation of amp designs destined to remain the choice of guitarists for centuries to come. Those that survived may have very different flavors, but they all have one thing in common: they respond very dynamically to the player's nuances. BUGERA captures these amps' musicality in a stunning 1x12 combo(V55) and amp head (V55HD) whose modern touches put a wider palette of vintage voicings at your fingertips. With a proud pair of 6L6 power valves in the output stage, the V55HD bathes your guitar in clean California sunshine. Let's go trippin'...

Old Guts, New Glory

Bugera went to great lengths to give these amp the ability to deliver everything those dusty relics of the rock revolution did--minus the collector-sized pricetags. But in true BUGERA fashion, they took this labor of love one step farther to give you maximum tonal possibilities. To explain, let's take a quick detour to the late 1940s...

Before hillbillies began co-opting the blues, amps came in two varieties: those with triode (having three active electrodes) power valves and those with pentode (containing five active electrodes) power valves. Triode valves, which predated the pentodes, provide what many guitarists agree is a "softer" tone. Pentodes produce a slightly more urgent, aggressive sound. The V55 and V55HD run on power pentode tubes, but include a Mode switch that lets you run the power section as if it had triode tubes - that is, at about 40 percent less power. This gives you the option of going beyond old-school - straight to elderly school. Welcome to your personal tonal time machine.

A cutting-edge classic

The old amps that defined electric guitar tone were often single-channel amps. These amps offer that same vintage clean, but add a second channel for modern high-gain tones. To begin, take your pick of the Bright or Normal inputs, then twist the three-band EQ (Bass, Mid, Treble) and Presence control to sculpt your signature sound. Depending on which channel you choose, three 12AX7 preamp tubes take your tone anywhere from dignified blues to garage-leveling madness.

The V55HD's power stage's dual 6L6 valves propel this tone through a BUGERA 12" speaker. Need to feed more speakers? Both amps have an Impedance switch that toggles between 4, 8 and 16 ohms, making them compatible with virtually any speaker cabinet. These amps also have reverb, but in the interest of tone and durability, their reverb is derived from a studio-caliber digital processor. The spring reverb found in their post-war predecessors sound lovely, but they're delicate and expensive to repair. The V55HD's modern update gives you an equally mesmerizing vintage reverb sound without the wallet-draining vintage reliability. And if all these features weren't enough...you also get a road-tough footswitch that allows you to select channels and activate/kill the reverb remotely. So whether you're in the studio, rehearsing in the garage or pulling into Champaign-Urbana for a gig that pays two pitchers, the V55HD is able to complement your craft with the gold-standard tones of the past--today!

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This review has been selected by our experts as particularly helpful.
"What the Heck? It actually sounds GREAT!"

Sound:
This amplifier was a sweet delight! I had been looking for a used Hot Rod DeVille, but bought this 'blemished' Bugera simply because it was sooooo cheap. Figured I would use it as a go between, then a practice amp. In short, I am gigging with it full time now. It didn't look blemished to me, and it sounds unbelievable! I have been playing for 20+ yrs, and thru many different tube amps and solid state amps and I can safely say that there is no real need for me to spend the extra 500 bucks on a Hot Rod DeVille. It sounds that good. The only reason I gave it a 9 instead of a 10 is because the Bass/Mid/Treble are a bit unresponsive. They could stand a little more Tonal variance, but it's a small issue. Very small.
Feature:
Included in the box was a foot switch to change channels, it works perfectly, but I use pedals for my overdrive and distortion. However, the distortion is pretty darn good. I imagine it could be better if it were re tubed and re biased. Some folks are saying the distortion is unusable....WRONG! If anyone says this, they aren't experienced or are looking for something out of 6L6's that they can't deliver. It seems to be built very well. The knobs could stand a little more resistance though. Put it in the trunk and drove 5 miles down the road to a friends house and they were all out of place, vibrations I guess.
Ease of Use:
This amp is very usable. It's easy to get a great sound. I plugged up straight out of the box, dialed in Clean Volume and Master Volume to 4, Bass to 10, Mid to 4, and treble to 5. After a minute I noticed that this amp is extremely Bright, Fender-bright, which is what I need, but I had to back the Treble down to 3...then...MAGIC!. Reverb is pretty good up to 6 or so, after that it gets a bit obnoxious. Some of the reviews give this amp a muddy tone quality...not true. Period. I even used my cheap Epiphone Les Paul Studio after my Strat...it was still bright...and that's saying a lot.
Quality:
LIke I said, the amp seems well put together. Solid. I do plan to upgrade the tubes at some point, but I can't imagine them not lasting. They sound great stock just like they are.
Value:
If you are on the fence...buy it. If you need a back-up...buy it. I got this amp for less than one of my effects pedals. It's worth twice it's cost...easily.
Manufacturer Support:
I emailed Bugera about a question I had with the impedance switch in the back. They replied in less than 24 hrs. Awesome. Very Awesome.
The Wow Factor:
Despite the connotations this product has with being associated with Behringer, it is actually quite elegant looking. Pretty. The Bugea logo reminds me of an old European sporta car or something. I am going to buy another one to run my effects in stereo in stead of a Fender now.
Overall:
I chose this amp because I was strapped for cash and my old one died. I am VERY SATISFIED! I highly recommend getting it. Just do it. You will thank yourself.

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"Amazing value! Excellent sound!"

Sound:
Most of us guitar players we have a tone in our head and this is what I want a guitar amp to sound like. Perfect! I play mostly blues, rock, country and jazz. The clean channel has a lot of headroom before breakup. I set the clean volume around 7-8 (2-3 o'clock) so I can control the breakup with the volume on the guitar and the attack of the pick. That is my sweet spot. The second channel is also excellent and gives me all the crunch I need for the stuff I play. I have a Boss ME 70 and I don't use the distortion on that at all anymore since the amp sounds better in my opinion. Sometimes I don't even bother hooking up the pedal. This amp, the matching 2x12 cabinet and my LP studio that's all I need. For larger venues I use an SM57 to the PA. This thing is loud enough.
Feature:
Someone else mentioned that bass, mid and treble is a little unresponsive and I agree. You expect more change when you turn the dial but it's a non issue for me since I don't need to tweak it out of the range. I basically just turn the bass down a little sometimes when it's sounds too much. It has a triode mode that I never really used since I'm happy with the pentode, normal mode. Reverb is decent sounding and I use it all the time. Never used the fx loop. The brightness input seems to just cut some of the bass but I prefer to turn the bass down instead. Sturdy foot pedal for reverb and channel switching. It has all the features I need and I like it simple.
Ease of Use:
This is a no-brainer to use. Plug in the guitar, turn on and wait for it to warm up turn up the volume and play.
Quality:
I've had it for 5 months now and it works as new. Seems reliable to me but I do have a backup in case it breaks down. It seems larger and heavier than it needs to be but it gives a solid impression.
Value:
This must be the best value on the market. 350 bucks and I payed 100 bucks for a gently used speaker cabinet. In a blind test you could have fooled me that this was a brand name boutique amp for thousands of dollars.
Manufacturer Support:
No need to contact support yet and their website answered all the questions I had.
The Wow Factor:
I like the retro styling but the real wow factor is the sound. People do comment on the sound and want to check out the gear and realize it's just an amp. Even though I want to think it's the chops that makes a difference.
Overall:
Together with the Bugera 2x12 cabinet this is without a doubt the best buy I ever made. I'm very satisfied with this rig.

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